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UMD
The Universal Media Disc (UMD) is an optical disc medium developed by Sony for use on the PlayStation Portable. It can hold up to 1.8 gigabytes of data. It is the first optical disc format to be used for a handheld video game system. Applications The primary application for UMD discs is as a storage medium for PSP games, although the format is also used for the storage of motion pictures, and to a lesser degree, television shows for playback on the PSP. The video is encoded in the H.264/MPEG-4 AVC format, with the audio in ATRAC3plus. The BBC released a number of its TV titles on UMD in the UK, including The Office, The Mighty Boosh, Doctor Who and Little Britain. Some adult films have been released on UMD in Japan. Circumvention Despite Sony's efforts, the UMD format has been cracked. Using a combination of insecure firmware and reverse engineering, the Sony PSP will run a variety of homebrew games, and backup ISO images. Each disc uses a file system whose format follows the ISO 9660 standard. The ISO image can then be stored on a Memory Stick, and run via a special disc emulator program, such as Devhook, or launched in the XMB with a custom firmware. Criticism Although the UMD discs offer large capacity and the capability to store quality audio/video content, the format's proprietary nature and the lack of writers and blank media have spawned criticisms.needed Comparisons to Sony's MiniDisc format have brought forth further criticisms; for instance, the sliding shield which prevents direct disc contact on MiniDiscs is absent from all UMDs released to date, though it is an option according to the ECMA specification.1 The smaller capacity of the UMD discs necessitates that bonus content from DVD releases be removed in large part or entirely before the movie is released on UMD for PSP playback. This has made the UMD movie releases a difficult sell in the face of affordable portable DVD players that can output to TV sets and can play the full-featured DVD releases. UMD movie pricing was also originally higher than DVD pricing, although UMDs have largely fallen to more reasonable prices starting at $9.99 & up at some Authorized Sony Dealers such as Sony Style USA and various promotions to U.S. troops overseas through AAFES.needed Due to the slow sales of UMD movies, some retailers, such as Tower Records, began offering incentives on UMD purchases, such as “buy one, get one free” deals.needed A few months after release, PSP users started complaining that the protective case around the disc would develop cracks with normal use.needed Sony has not considered this a defect under warranty.needed In response third party companies have produced replacement casings in order for consumers to continue to use the discs and save their investments in the games. Future Sony have decided to exclude a UMD drive from the new PSP, the PSP Go, which will be released late 2009. The device is expected to be smaller and lighter than UMD-based PSPs and run exclusively on digital downloads. PSP games sold in the future will include both the UMD and digital version as Sony will not discontinue the UMD-based PSP 3000 series Provisions According to the official ECMA specification Sony designed the UMD to support two possible future enhancements and products.1 1. Protective Shutter: Similar to the MiniDisc and 3 1/2" floppy disc, this protective shutter will shield the inner disc from accidental contact. 2. Auto-Loading: UMDs were designed for possible future slot loading devices with Auto-Loading mechanisms. These would be very similar to the auto-loading mechanism used in slot loading MiniDisc home and car decks. It would also be similar to the VHS U-Matic auto-loading mechanism. Unlike the current clamshell loading design the PSP uses, a slot loading device using an Auto-Loading mechanism would be motorized and completely automatic. You would insert the disc into the device slot, similar to the way you insert a VHS cassette into a VCR, and a disc into the PS3, and as you begin to insert it, the motorized mechanism would then take over and completely draw the disc inside the drive, and complete the loading process. The disc would also be ejected fully automatically by the motorized mechanism, like a VCR. This would also mean that power would be required in order to insert or eject a disc.